Let’s begin by turning the clock back to 2014. For the sake of this discussion I will be using the scoring system that was at play in the SiriusXM Host League. Here is the scoring system we used.

1 point = 10 receiving yards

1 point = per reception

6 points = per touchdown

2 points = for two pt. conversion

Note: Point totals are for Weeks 1-16

FIRST GROUP

In 2014 there was one man who played tight end who recorded 15 points per game (17.8). Obviously that was Rob Gronkowski.

There were three other tight ends who recorded 14 points per contest: Jimmy Graham (14.6), Greg Olsen (14.4) and Antonio Gates (14.2).

There were two tight ends with 13 points a game: Martellus Bennett (13.8) and Julius Thomas (13.7).

That’s six tight ends who scored 13 points per game last season. Removing Gronk, that’s five guys within a point of each other.

SECOND GROUP

Delanie Walker recorded 11.8 points per game.

THIRD GROUP

There were four men who recorded 10 points per game: Travis Kelce (10.8), Jason Witten (10.4), Coby Fleener (10.3), Heath Miller (10.2).

FOURTH GROUP

There were four men who recorded nine points a game: Larry Donnell (9.9), Charles Clay (9.3), Jermaine Gresham (9.1), Zach Ertz (9.0).

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REVIEW

Let’s remove Gronk. He’s on a tier all by his own, though he’s often hurt and he’s without his QB for a quarter of the season (more on that below).

There were then five guys who were within a point of each other at the top last season. That means five of the top-6 were a PAT apart in average scoring per game. A mere point.

Then there was Walker.

Then there was a group of nine other who were within two points of each other. Read that again. NINE MEN WITHIN TWO POINTS.

And that’s the crux of the main thrust of this article.

There is massive parity at the tight end position.

The difference between TE#7 last year and TE#15, and who is in a 16-team league?, was 1.8 points. Please read that again. If you were in a 12-team league and took a tight end in the last round of your draft, and by chance ended up with TE15, you would have given up two or fewer points to at least a third of the league. Therefore, does it make any sense to reach on a tight end? I haven’t even gotten to a huge point – and that is did you choose the correct tight end last year? Did you take Jordan Cameron, Tyler Eifert or Jared Cook? If you did then you spent a mid-level pick on a player who bombed. You could have picked up Donnell or Clay off waivers and smoked those guys. But that is beside the point. Here are the main takeaways of this brief review.
 

  1. I personally believe that taking any tight end in the first few rounds is a mistake. Yes, even taking Gronkowski is a mistake. Not focusing on the fact that he seems likely to be without his quarterback for a quarter of the season or that he has played an average of just 69 percent of the games the last three years, there’s the fact that taking him to gain a field goal advantage over Martellus Bennett just ain’t worth it. Furthermore… while you’re taking Gronk I’m drafting Matt Forte or Randall Cobb. I then will add Jason Witten seven rounds after you take Gronk. Wanna bet that my Forte/Witten duo scores as many points (or more) a week as your Chris Ivory/Gronk combo?
  2. There are simply too many options at the tight end position to have to worry about drafting two guys. Let someone else make that move unless you have a huge bench or if your first tight end is a health risk (Thomas, Cameron etc.).
  3. You can make a strong argument that if you aren’t gonna take one of the elites that waiting until the rounds are in the double-digits is almost a must. Moreover, you might be able to wait until the last couple of rounds to nab your tight end. Why take a guy five rounds before I do in order to gain 1.8 points a week? I’ll use that earlier selection to grab a player that gives me a 2.0 point advantage over you leaving me 0.2 points ahead of you. Well, you get the point, right?
  4. The above discussion doesn’t even factor in players like Dwayne Allen, Owen Daniels, Kyle Rudolph, Austin Seferian-Jenkins etc. who were injured or underperformed last season. I would bet most leagues that include 12 or more teams… all of those tight ends will end up on a roster.

So it’s up to you how you want to play the tight end position but hopefully this review of what transpired in 2014 will cause you some pause when it comes to your desire to grab a tight end early in your draft this season.

 

Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Friday at 8 PM EDT on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 9 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).